How God Used A Roman Decree To Fulfill Prophecy.
Do you ever feel like world events are just random chaos? Like powerful people make decisions that affect your life, and there’s nothing you can do about it?
That’s probably exactly how Mary and Joseph felt when Caesar Augustus decided it was time for a census.
Picture this: Mary is nine months pregnant. Like, ready-to-have-this-baby-any-minute pregnant. She’s uncomfortable, exhausted, and probably just wanting to nest and prepare for labor in the safety of her own home. And then comes the decree from Rome: everyone has to travel to their ancestral hometown to register for a census.
For Joseph, that meant Bethlehem, about 90 miles south of Nazareth. That’s a brutal journey on foot (or donkey) even under the best circumstances. With a heavily pregnant wife? Not the ideal family road trip!
I’m sure they asked, “Why now? Why does this have to happen right now?”
What they couldn’t see was that this census was exactly what needed to happen to fulfill a 700-year-old prophecy. God didn’t just work in spite of Caesar’s census. He worked through it.
The Scripture
In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
Luke 2:1-5 (NIV)
Understanding Luke 2:1-5
“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.” Caesar Augustus was the most powerful man on earth at that time. Emperor of Rome. Commander of armies. When he issued a decree, it happened. No questions asked.
But what Caesar didn’t know was that he was being used by God to fulfill prophecy. He wasn’t thinking about the Messiah or Micah 5:2 or anything even remotely spiritual. He simply wanted a census taken for taxation and military purposes.
Yet God was using him.
That’s how God works. He doesn’t need people to know they’re part of His plan to use them. He’s sovereign over kings, governments, and world events. What might look like a random political decision to us is often God moving to accomplish His purposes.
“And everyone went to their own town to register.” Mary and Joseph didn’t have a choice. It was law. They had to go. For most people it was an inconvenience, but for Mary and Joseph, the timing couldn’t have been worse.
“So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.” God needed Jesus to be born to fulfill the prophecy given to Micah, so He used a pagan emperor who didn’t know or care about Jewish prophecy to get Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem aat exactly the right time.
I love how God could have simply sent another angel with special instructions, but instead He used an ordinary, frustrating, inconvenient event to position them exactly where they needed to be.
“He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.” For Mary, the trip would have been exhausting, uncomfortable, and maybe even dangerous. But they went anyway. They trusted God even when their circumstances felt overwhelming.
And because they trusted God, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, exactly as prophesied and exactly on time.
Faith in Action
Trust that God is sovereign over world events. It’s so easy to feel anxious about politics, leaders, and decisions that are completely out of your control. But God is still on the throne. He’s still sovereign, and He can use any leader, any government, any decree to accomplish His purposes, whether they know it or not.
That certainly doesn’t mean that every political decision is good or right. It means God is bigger than all of it. He’s working even when it feels like chaos.
Look for God’s hand in inconvenient circumstances. Mary and Joseph’s census trip was inconvenient, exhausting, and terribly timed. But it was also exactly what needed to happen for prophecy to be fulfilled.
What inconvenient, frustrating circumstances are you facing right now? A job change? A move? A disruption to your plans? Instead of just seeing the difficulty, ask God, “What are You doing here? How are You working through this?”
Obey even when timing feels terrible. Mary and Joseph could have refused to go. But they obeyed the decree, and in doing so, they positioned themselves for God’s plan to unfold. Sometimes God calls us to obey even when the timing feels awful. Trust that He knows what He’s doing, even when you don’t.
Remember that God’s plans are bigger than your understanding. I’m sure that Mary and Joseph didn’t understand what God was doing. But they obeyed anyway, even though I’m sure they felt that the census was random, chaotic, and frustrating. God also doesn’t always work in the ways we expect. He will use everything, anything, and anyone to accomplish His plans, so don’t limit Him to working only in “religious” ways.
Reflection Questions
- When have you experienced an inconvenient or frustrating circumstance that later turned out to be part of God’s plan?
- How does knowing God is sovereign over world leaders and events change the way you view current politics and global situations?
- Mary and Joseph obeyed even when the timing felt terrible. Is there something God is asking you to obey right now, even though the timing feels wrong?
- Where in your life do you need to trust that God is working behind the scenes, even when you can’t see it yet?
- How can you shift from seeing inconveniences as obstacles to seeing them as possible tools in God’s hands?
- What does it mean to you that God used a secular, political decree to fulfill spiritual prophecy? How does that expand your view of how God works?
- Are you trying to control circumstances instead of trusting God’s sovereignty? What would it look like to release control and trust Him more fully?
Affirmation
God is sovereign over every circumstance in my life. I will trust His plan, even when I can’t see the full picture.
Closing Prayer
Father
Thank You that You are sovereign over everything – world events, government decisions, and the details of my life.
Help me trust that You’re working even in the inconvenient, frustrating circumstances I face.
Give me eyes to see Your hand at work and faith to obey even when timing feels terrible.
Remind me that Your plans are bigger than my understanding and that You’re weaving every detail together for Your glory and my good.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
